The Penguins captain, despite registering seven points in eight games this season, has been largely ineffectual at five-on-five this season

Yes, we're only eight games into the Pittsburgh Penguins' 2024-25 season.

Yes, it's too early to assess most things concerning this team.

That being said, we need to talk about Penguins captain Sidney Crosby.

To be clear, it's not like Crosby has been absent from the score sheet: He still has a goal and seven points in eight games this season, and four of those seven points have come on a power play that does appear to be better than it has been in years past.

But when you start to consider the eye test - and the underlyings - that's where you will probably see some real cause for concern.

Let's start with the underlyings. Per Moneypuck, these are some of Crosby's five-on-five team ranks - among all Penguins skaters - in some major analytical categories.

And, let me tell you: They're not pretty.

- Tied for Ninth in Expected Goals (1.5)
- 11th in Expected Goals per 60 Minutes (0.69)
- T-12th in Unblocked High-Danger Shot Attempts (1)
- T-11th in High-Danger Expected Goals (0.27)
- T-15th in Corsi/On-Ice Shot Attempt % (51 percent)
- 20th in Fenwick/On-Ice Unblocked Shot Attempt % (47 percent)
- 18th in On-Ice Expected Goals Share (43.5 percent)
- T-20th in On-Ice Expected Goals Against Per 60 Minutes (4.67)
- 20th in On-Ice High-Danger Shot Attempts Against Per 60 Minutes (6.17)
- Fourth in Giveaways (11)
- Fifth in Defensive Zone Giveaways (5)

If you're thinking what I'm thinking, these aren't just concerning figures for Crosby. These are outright poor numbers for anyone. And in a lot of these categories, the only players surrounding Crosby are defensemen, the regularly-scratched Valtteri Puustinen, the AHL-optioned Rutger McGroarty, and linemate Bryan Rust.

And, believe it or not, there's more. According to Hockey Stat Cards, Crosby's net rating and average GameScore are at shocking lows so far this season:

[gallery ids="1072,1073,1074,1075"]

For perspective, the Penguins' best skater this season, according to the data, has been Rickard Rakell. Crosby is 2.1 rating points below Rakell at 10th overall among forwards, and he has the sixth-worst net rating among all Penguins' skaters who have played at least three games.

Right now, I would say that, despite these numbers, Crosby has managed to be productive. But something clearly isn't right with him or his line. Rust hasn't fared any better than Crosby in these categories, and while I'm not about to break down all of his numbers, too - although, Rust's net rating is at an alarming -1.6 - it really makes you wonder if there is something else at work here. 

Rust was on injured reserve to start the season with a lower-body injury, and it's possible that he's still not 100 percent. Crosby crashed hard into the opposing net during the Penguins' second game against the Detroit Red Wings, and while this is purely observation and speculation, he hasn't looked quite right since then. He has also allowed Evgeni Malkin to take a lot of faceoffs when they've shared the ice together, which is a bit odd given Crosby's career-long success in the circles.

But even if injuries are a factor here, they're hardly an excuse for how poorly they have both performed on the Penguins' top line up to this point. And, at times, it even seems that there is a bit of disengagement.

During a sequence against Winnipeg on Sunday, Crosby and Rust were both caught coasting back to the bench on a line change during four-on-four play late in the second period, and it resulted in a Jets' odd-man rush and scoring chance:

This is highly out of character for a guy like Crosby, who is notorious for playing hard and giving it his all on every shift.

So this begs the question: What is going on here?

This version of Crosby is eerily remniscent of the version from early in the 2015-16 season, back when Mike Johnston was still the Penguins' coach and Pittsburgh was in a pretty serious struggle to win games. It was easy to tell through Crosby's body language that whatever message Johnston was trying to get across to his players wasn't being heard anymore.

Crosby's poor start could simply be chalked up to the fact that he has, indeed, historically been a slow starter. If anything, it's always a safe bet that Crosby will come around, as will his line.

But the stuff in the video above? Sure, it's a Crosby issue. But this is also the body language of a star player who is tired, has given up on his team, or has become disengaged from the "play the right way" messaging of his coach. It's worth considering that this sequence occured exactly one minute after the Jets tied the game 2-2 - and after the Penguins blew the 2-0 lead.

Sidney Crosby giving up on his team would just never, ever happen. Not a chance. This guy's level of compete is too high. His desire to win is too great. There is pretty much a net-zero chance that he has given up on his team just eight games into the young 2024-25 season, especially since this is a lineup, from top to bottom, that has proven it can help him and Malkin on the scoresheet.

But the Penguins are, yet again, making glaring mental mistakes. And this is something that Crosby, in particular, is doing with more frequency in all three zones this season than he has at any point in recent memory. 

And at the end of the day? Fair or not, that falls back on the coach.

More than likely, folks will be looking at Crosby's numbers a month from now and laughing about how silly this whole thing was. And, for the Penguins' and for Crosby's sake, you have to hope that's the case.

But, at the very least, the alarm bells should be blaring for Kyle Dubas and his hockey operations cohort, signaling that "playing the right way" simply may not be resonating with this group of veterans anymore.

The last time the Penguins made a coaching change was during that 2015-16 season. Crosby and his team found new life and ended up bringing home their first of back-to-back Stanley Cup Championships that year.

Crosby needs to find his game sooner rather than later. Maybe it's bumping a hot player like Rakell up with him and Rust to help get them going. Maybe it's reducing his minutes a bit. Or, maybe, it's a change at the helm. 

Regardless, Crosby is the Penguins' heartbeat, their most influential player, and their most important player - and right now, his team needs him to step up in a big way.

Bookmark THN's Pittsburgh Penguins site for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and more.

Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin recently notched major milestones, and The Hockey Toons is here to celebrate them! Check out their Crosby and Malkin Milestone Cartoon.